Gareth Taylor makes his last transfer before the season opener (Credits: Imago Images)
Rangers manager Derek McInnes has outlined a determined recruitment strategy as the club pushes to complete further signings ahead of the new season.
The 55-year-old has been in charge for just over a month, with the squad returning from a pre-season training camp in Benidorm to begin final preparations.
Six signings have already been made this summer, with chief executive Jim Gillespie pushing ahead on moves for Partizan Belgrade’s Vanja Dragojevic and Tromso ace Jens Hjerto Dahl.
McInnes is working in close partnership with Gillespie, and the pair have a clear plan mapped out for the squad they want to build together.
“But you keep exhausting certain targets until it is a yes or a no and you move on,” McInnes said, emphasising the relentless pace of the transfer window.
Rangers will make their first public appearance of the pre-season period when they host French Ligue 1 side St Etienne at Ibrox in a friendly on Wednesday night.
A final warm-up match against West Ham follows on July 26 before the competitive season gets underway at Tannadice on July 31.
McInnes is refreshingly clear-eyed about the pressure that comes with managing a club of Rangers’ stature and expectation.
“I know that at this club, you’re judged on your results,” he said, adding that he feels “the burden and the weight” of his responsibilities keenly.
The Benidorm trip served a dual purpose, allowing intense training sessions while also giving players and staff the opportunity to bond away from the usual surroundings.
“The coming away part of it is really good in the sense that it allows me to have more one-to-one chats with the players,” McInnes explained during his review of pre-season.
He added that the players equally needed that extended time together to build understanding and chemistry within the group.
Off the pitch, Rangers have moved to bring back familiar faces, with former goalkeeper Allan McGregor welcomed back as goalkeeping coach after just twelve months away.
McGregor, a hero of the nine-in-a-row era, previously held the coaching role briefly during Barry Ferguson’s stint as caretaker manager at Ibrox.
Kitman Jim McAllister is also set to return to work alongside David MacGregor, having been forced out under former CEO James Bisgrove.
McInnes was direct in dismissing any suggestion these appointments represent favouritism, insisting the club simply wants the best person available for every single role.
“It certainly doesn’t do any harm if there is an affiliation,” he said, “but they’re there because they’re good at their job, not because there’s an affiliation with the club.”
The manager acknowledged the honeymoon feel of pre-season will soon give way to the sharp reality of competitive football and the unrelenting scrutiny that follows.
“I’m determined not to let anybody down,” he said, underlining that assembling the right squad is central to everything he is trying to achieve at Ibrox.
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